Aldi shoppers in Inverness stunned as aggressive seagulls swoop to steal shopping from trolleys
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An Inverness supermarket has been forced to compensate customers after greedy seagulls began raiding shopping trolleys.
The aggressive gulls have been ruffling feathers by preying on startled shoppers in the car park of the Aldi store at Sir Walter Scott Drive in Inshes.
Often perched and waiting on lampposts, the brazen birds have been swooping in and winging it with items such as packs of bacon, chicken and burgers.
They then tend to end up scrapping over the tasty bounty with flocks of other gulls.
It is understood a number of gull attack victims have had stolen shopping items replaced by Aldi.
With some store regulars now thinking twice about visiting, the store's bosses have been investigating ways of protecting customers from the gulls, which nest above and near the store.
A spokesman for the firm said it was working on ways to alleviate the problem, but was unable to say what might be done.
He said: “We are aware of a small number of incidents involving seagulls at our Inverness store and are working hard to resolve the issues for our customers.”
Options are limited since all species of gull are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985.
This makes it illegal to intentionally or, in Scotland and Northern Ireland, recklessly injure or kill any gull, or damage or destroy an active nest or contents.
One shopper who was terrorised by a gull at the Aldi store said: “They came out of nowhere and I got the fright of my life.
"Getting robbed by seagulls is the last thing that I expect to happen when I head out to the shops.”
Another, a mum of three, added: “I was pretty freaked out by it all. The gulls have gone rogue.”
